ELECTRIC TERMINAL BLOCK

Abstract

An electric terminal block having a terminal housing, two conductor connection elements in the housing, and two current bars. Each current bar has a connection portion and a resilient contact portion. Each connection portion is paired with a respective conductor connection element, and the contact portions together form a contact region for receiving and contacting the plug of a test plug or disconnecting plug. The contact portions contact each other when no plug is plugged in such that the two conductor connection elements are electrically connected together via the two current bars. A transverse connection between two conductor connection elements of two adjacent terminal blocks is produced automatically when a test plug or disconnecting plug is plugged onto the terminal blocks. The terminal housing has two spring elements that have a resilient contact portion; the contact portions of the spring elements together form an additional contact region for the plug.

Claims

1-10. (canceled)

11. An electrical terminal block, comprising a terminal housing, at least two conductor connecting elements located in the terminal housing, and two conductor bars, each of which have a connecting section and at least one resilient contact section, each connecting section being associated with a respective conductor connecting element and the contact sections together forming a contact region for accommodating and making contact with a plug, and the contact sections having a basic position in which the connecting elements are electrically connected to one another via the two conductor bars and from which the contact sections are displaceable by insertion of a plug therebetween, and two spring elements located in the terminal housing, each spring element having a respective further resilient contact section, the contact sections of the two spring elements together forming another contact region for a plug which is located in a plug-in direction of the plug upstream of the contact region of the conductor bars, wherein at least one of the spring elements has a receiver for a leg of a plug-in jumper, wherein a respective spring element is connected in an electrically conductive manner to one of the conductor bars via the plug when the plug of an inserted test or isolating plug.

12. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein the resilient contact sections of the two spring elements are each essentially C-shaped or V-shaped.

13. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein the two spring elements each have one connecting section in which the receiver for plugging in one leg of a plug-in jumper is made.

14. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein at least one of the spring elements has a receiver recess for plugging in a leg of a plug-in jumper.

15. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein the two conductor bars each have a second resilient contact section which are spaced apart from one another and together form a second contact region for a plug, the second contact region of the conductor bars being located between the first contact region of the conductor bars and the contact region of the two spring elements in plug-in direction of the plug.

16. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein the two conductor bars each are formed of two individual metal strips which are connected to one another in an electrically conductive manner, the two connecting sections each being formed from a first metal strip and the contact sections each being formed from a second metal strip.

17. The electrical terminal block as claimed in claim 11, wherein an opening for plugging the of a test isolating plug into the contact regions and at least one opening for plugging in a leg of a plug-in bridge into the receiver of spring element are provided in the terminal housing, the openings being accessible from an operator side of the terminal housing.

18. A block formed of a plurality of terminal blocks which, each of which comprises a terminal housing, at least two conductor connecting elements located in the terminal housing, and two conductor bars, each of which have a connecting section and at least one resilient contact section, each connecting section being associated with a respective conductor connecting element and the contact sections together forming a contact region for accommodating and making contact with a plug, and the contact sections having a basic position in which the connecting elements are electrically connected to one another via the two conductor bars and from which the contact sections are displaceable by insertion of a plug therebetween, and two spring elements located in the terminal housing, each spring element having a respective further resilient contact section, the contact sections of the two spring elements together forming another contact region for a plug which is located in a plug-in direction of the plug upstream of the contact region of the conductor bars, wherein at least one of the spring elements has a receiver for a leg of a plug-in jumper, wherein a respective spring element is connected in an electrically conductive manner to one of the conductor bars via the plug when the plug of an inserted test or isolating plug, and further comprising at least one plug-in bridge which has at least two legs, wherein in at least one spring element of a first of the terminal blocks and in the corresponding spring element of a second of the terminal blocks, a respective leg of the plug-in jumper is plugged so that the conductor connecting elements of the first and second electrical terminal blocks are connected to one another in an electrically conductive manner when a test isolating plug is plugged into the two terminal blocks.

19. The block of terminal blocks as claimed in claim 18, wherein the terminal blocks are mechanically connected to one another via a corresponding latch element of the terminal housing.

20. The block of terminal blocks as claimed in claim 18, wherein, on two sides of the plurality of terminal blocks which are located next to one another, there is a mounting terminal with a terminal housing having a fixing element which is movably located therein.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] FIG. 1 shows one exemplary embodiment of an electrical terminal block in a side view,

[0028] FIG. 2 shows the terminal block according to FIG. 1, with a test plug plugged in,

[0029] FIG. 3 shows a terminal block, with a test plug which has not yet been fully plugged in,

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a block of terminal blocks which has been assembled from two terminal blocks, obliquely from the side,

[0031] FIG. 5 shows two isolating plugs which are located next to one another, and

[0032] FIG. 6 shows a perspective of a block of terminal blocks which consists of several terminal blocks.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0033] The electrical terminal block 1 in accordance with the invention which is shown in FIG. 1 has a terminal housing 2 of plastic which in the illustrated embodiment can be inserted and fastened in an opening of one wall, in particular a wall of a control cabinet. Within the terminal housing 2 there are two conductor connecting elements 3, 4 which are screw-type terminals here. But alternatively other types of connecting elements, for example tension spring terminals, leg spring terminals or insulation piercing connecting devices can also be used as conductor connecting elements.

[0034] In the terminal housing 2 there are moreover two more conductor bars 5, 6 which are made the same and which are located mirror-symmetrically to one another. The conductor bars 5, 6 each have on their one end a connecting section 7, 7 which is assigned to a respective one of the two conductor connecting elements 3, 4, i.e., is inserted into the screw terminals. Moreover, the two conductor connecting elements 3, 4 each have another first contact section 8, 8 which together form a resilient first contact region 9 for accommodating the metal insertion portions of a test plug 11 which is shown in FIG. 2 or an isolating plug 29 which is shown in FIG. 5. As is apparent from FIG. 1, the two contact sections 8, 8 make contact if a plug 11 has not been inserted so that the two conductor connecting elements 3, 4 are connected to one another in an electrically conductive manner via the two conductor bars 5, 6 in the base state in which a test plug 11 or isolating plug 29 has not been inserted.

[0035] The electrical terminal block 1 in accordance with the invention moreover has two more spring elements 12, 13 which are located in the terminal housing 2 and which in the base state of the terminal block 1 according to FIG. 1, i.e., with the test plug 11 not plugged in, are not connected to the conductor bars 5, 6 in an electrically conductive manner. The two spring elements 12, 13, each have one resilient contact section 14, 14, the spring elements 12, 13 being arranged mirror-symmetrically to one another such that the contact sections 14, 14 form a further contact region 15 for the two insertion portions 19, 19 of a test plug 11 or of an isolating plug 29. The contact sections 14, 14, as shown in the figures, can have a distance to one another so that they do not make contact. Fundamentally, the contact sections 14, 14 can however also be made and located such that the contact sections 14, 14 make contact when a plug 11 or 29 has not been plugged in.

[0036] The spring elements 12, 13 are used to easily produce cross bridging between two terminal blocks 1, P. To do this, in at least one of the two spring elements 12, 13 a recess 16 is formed as a receiver for one leg 17 of a plug-in jumper 18. For two adjacent terminal blocks 1, 1 then two spring elements 12 or 13 are electrically connected to one another via the two legs 17 of one plug-in jumper 18.

[0037] According to FIG. 2, if the insertion portion of a test plug 11 is plugged into a terminal block 1, this leads to a respective spring element 12, 13 being connected in an electrically conductive manner to the assigned conductor bar 5, 6 via a respective metal insertion portions 19, 19. In the completely plugged-in state of the respective metal insertion portions 19, 19, the two conductor bars 5, 6 in the first contact region 9 are moreover separated from one another by the plug 11 or 29 so that then the two conductor connecting elements 3, 4 are also no longer electrically connected to one another via the conductor bars 5, 6. The spring elements 12, 13 which can be produced easily by punching and subsequently bending from one metal strip, in addition to the roughly C-shaped contact sections 14, 14, each have another essentially straight connecting section 20, 20 in which the recess 16 is punched out for plugging in the leg of a plug-in jumper test plug 11. Altogether, the spring elements 12, 13 thus have a rough S shape, the spring elements 12, 13 preferably being attached in the terminal housing 2 via correspondingly made projections.

[0038] When the plug 11 or 29 is being plugged into the terminal block 1 in order to reliably ensure that first of all the spring elements 12, 13 are electrically connected to the conductor bar 5, 6 before the electrical connection between the two conductor bars 5, 6 in the first contact region 9 is broken, the conductor bars 5, 6 each have another second resilient contact section 21, 21. The second contact sections 21, 21 which have a distance from one another together form a second contact region 22 which is located in the plug-in direction E of the plug 11 or 29 upstream of the first contact region 9 of the conductor bars 5, 6 and downstream of the contact region 15 of the spring elements 12, 13. When the plug 11 or 29 is plugged into the terminal block 1, the two metal insertion portions 19, 19 thus first make contact with the contact sections 14, 14 of the two spring elements 12, 13 and the second contact sections 21, 21 of the conductor bars 5, 6 so that the spring elements 12, 13 are electrically connected to the conductor bars 5, 6 via the metal insertion portions 19, 19, as is shown in FIG. 3. Only if the metal insertion portion 19, 19 is still further plugged in, does it enter the first contact region 9, as a result of which the first contact sections 8, 8 of the conductor bars 5, 6 are separated from one another.

[0039] In the exemplary embodiment of the electrical terminal block 1 which is shown in the figures, the two conductor bars 5, 6 each is comprised of two individual elongated metal strips 23, 24 which are soldered, welded or riveted to one another in the transition region. The two connecting sections 7, 7 are formed here by the first bent metal strip 23 whose ends which face away from the second metal strip 24 project into the clamping part of the screw terminal 3, 4. While the first metal strips 23 are relatively rigid, the altogether roughly C-shaped second metal strips 24 are made as contact springs, as a result of which the contact forces which are required in the first contact region 9 and in the second contact region 22 can be easily implemented. By using different materials and different cross sections for the metal strips 23, 24, the conductor bars 5, 6 can be optimally adapted to the different requirements in the connecting section 7, 7 on the one hand and in the contact regions 9, 22 on the other.

[0040] FIG. 4 shows a block of terminal blocks which is formed of two terminal blocks 1, 1, the two terminal blocks 1, 1 being connected to one another via a plug-in jumper 18 whose two plugs 17 are each plugged into one recess 16 in one spring element 12 of the two terminal blocks 1, 1. In the terminal housing 2 of the terminal blocks 1 one opening 25 at a time for plugging the metal insertion portion of a test plug 11 into the contact regions 9, 15 and 22 is made in the middle. Moreover, on the two sides of the opening 25, a respective further opening 26 is made for plugging the leg 17 of a plug-in jumper 18 into the recess 16 in a connecting section 20, 21 of one spring element 12, 13.

[0041] The openings 25, 26 are accessible here from the first side 27, the operator side of the terminal block 1. This has the advantage that in an arrangement of the terminal block 1 or a corresponding block of terminal blocks in one opening of a door of a control cabinet both a test plug 11 and also a plug-in jumper 18 can be plugged into the terminal blocks 1, 1 without the door of the control cabinet having to be opened for this purpose. Another advantage is that the plug-in jumpers 18 are easily recognizable from the front for an operator, as a result of which it can also be clearly recognized to which terminal blocks current transformers are connected. The connection of the electrical lines for example of one current transformer takes place conversely from the second side 28, the connecting side of the terminal block 1 which is then located within the control cabinet.

[0042] Instead of a test plug 11, an isolating plug 29 can also be plugged into the opening 25 in the terminal housing 2. FIG. 5 shows two such isolating plugs 29 which are located next to one another and which can be plugged, for example, into the two terminal blocks 1, 1 which are shown in FIG. 4. Like the test plug 11, the isolating plug 29 also has a metal insertion portions 19, 19 which are insulated from one another. For better handling, on the isolating plug 29, moreover, another handle region 30 is formed on which an identification plate 31 can be attached.

[0043] FIG. 6 shows a block of terminal blocks which is comprised of several terminal blocks 1. On the two sides of the plurality of terminal blocks 1 which are connected to one another, there is one mounting terminal 32 each which are used for simple and reliable mounting of the block of terminal blocks in an opening of a door of a control cabinet. For this purpose, in the terminal housing 33 of the mounting terminal 32 a fixing element 34 is movably located and can be moved into a clamping position using an actuating element, for example, a screw driver.